Every January, we share a tribute to members of our community who we lost last year. Some were legends, others were pillars of their community, all were climbers. Read the full tribute to Climbers We Lost in 2025 here.
Bob Robertson, 78, January 31
A fixture of the Colorado climbing scene for more than five decades, Bob Robertson embodied the purest form of devotion to the craft. “Bob was just a climber through and through,” said one friend. He remembered him as a route developer, storyteller, and tireless presence at the crag.
Starting in the 1970s around Colorado Springs and the Garden of the Gods, Robertson became known for his endless appetite for new lines. Some became local classics; many remain obscure, their authorship long forgotten.
Those who know Robertson’s work can still spot the relics of his early efforts: homemade red-painted hangers cut from angle iron, scattered on cliffs throughout the region. He bolted anything—good, bad, or ugly—and left behind hundreds, perhaps thousands, of first ascents across the Pikes Peak region, Shelf Road, Phantom Canyon, and the South Platte.
For the last decade, one of Robertson’s closest climbing partners and friends was Staci Suter. They developed routes, traveled together, and spent long days wandering walls, searching for potential new lines. Suter, the mother of a competition climber, loved learning the old-school history and craft from him; Robertson never tired of her questions about bolts, strategy, and ethics…